Building an effective social networking strategy is essential for creating positive brand recognition for every company regardless of whether they operate online or are a traditional “brick and mortar” type business.
In today’s fast paced environment almost everyone researches businesses online to determine where they will eat, at what stores they will shop, or what companies can provide the services they need. They look for ease of use, prices and reliability. All of these can and should be formed by creating a business’s positive online presence.
In order to effectively market your business online there must be a specific goal set for yourself or your business whether it’s adding new clients, increasing revenue or finding new sources for your products. Make sure your goal is specific and clear.
An intricate part of your online marketing strategy should be utilizing the services of a Virtual Assistant. However, it is important that the business owner or representative be involved consistently.
What exactly can your VA do for you?
Depending upon your current involvement and skill in social networking will determine the role your VA will play in your strategy. If SM is new to you or you are unsure of what is important have your qualified VA coach you on creating a personalized strategy.
One of the most important tasks that need to be done after developing your plan is identifying which social networks apply to your business and will help you reach your goal. Let your VA set up and optimize each network and monitor them for effectiveness.
A very important way of increasing online traffic is by posting blogs, articles, videos and social bookmarking. These tasks can and should be outsourced to your VA as something she can take care of regularly using the many tools available.
Monitoring the social networks and tracking the success of your strategy should also be outsourced. Monitoring your company’s online reputation and bringing to your attention both negative and positive conversations, even researching and building your targeted followers will be an important part of her role.
Take ownership of your strategy, determine your goal, outsource where you can but remember you are the “voice” of your business. For a successful social networking campaign both the services of your VA and your own involvement is important.
Great post Carol Ann! I’ve had a few say to me, VAs should not look after a client’s Twitter because it is not personal, the client themselves should be tweeting. I agree on the second half of that statement, yes, social networking works best if the client themselves get involved. But, a VA can make simplify the process by helping in other areas ex.) finding followers of interest, using Hootsuite to pre-post tweets of interest to followers, help in setup/branding your twitter account, watch DMs & notify client if responses are needed, brainstorm with new marketing campaigns with client to use on Twitter and the list goes on. My point being, a VA is a necessity in helping clients with their social networking strategies…have you got a VA yet? 😉
Thanks Tawyna. I agree with you that a VA is equally as important in ensuring a social networking campaign is successful and brings the client a return on his investment (ROI). There is so much a VA can do that will allow the business owner the time to take care of personalizing his connections.